KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia extended its downtrend at midday with broad based selling in all sectors as investors turn cautious amid recessionary fears in the United States.
At 12.30pm, FTSE Bursa Malaysia (FBM) KLCI was down 2.75 per cent or 44.38 points to 1,566.67 versus Friday's close of 1,611.05.
The key index opened at 1,593.63 and hit the lowest point of 1,563.18, down 47.87 points, in the morning trading session.
The broader market was negative with decliners surpassing gainers 1,316 to 155 while 267 counters were unchanged.
The index board was a sea of red with FBM100 losing 1.51 per cent to 11,919.95, FBM Emas dropped 1.66 per cent to 12,303.50 and FBM Ace dropped 2.86 per cent to 5,470.41.
Tradeview Capital fund manager Neoh Jia Man said the index may have found a bottom today, as most stocks had recovered from their day-low, indicating that dip-buying activities are beginning to take place.
"The direction of US equity futures will likely determine market performance in the afternoon session.
"In our view, the correction may have been overdone in the near term, as the ongoing earnings season suggests that US corporate earnings growth remains solid," Neoh told Business Times.